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Why Is Oral Health Critical
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Hi everyone, in this article, I am going to cover the importance of good oral health. I did a search on the many diseases that can be caused by neglecting your oral health.
These statistics were obtained from. The World Health Organization (WHO).
- Oral diseases pose a major health burden for many countries and affect people throughout their lifetime, causing pain, discomfort, disfigurement, and even death.
- These diseases share common risk factors with other major non-communicable diseases.
- It is estimated that oral diseases affect nearly 3.5 billion people.
- Untreated dental caries (tooth decay) in permanent teeth is the most common health condition according to the Global Burden of Disease 2017.
- More than 530 million children suffer from dental caries of primary teeth (milk teeth).
- Severe periodontal (gum) disease, which may result in tooth loss, is also very common, with almost 10% of the global population affected.
- Oral cancer (cancer of the lip or mouth) is one of the three most common cancers in some countries of Asia and the Pacific.
- Treatment for oral health conditions is expensive and usually not part of universal health coverage (UHC). In most high-income countries, dental treatment averages 5% of total health expenditure and 20% of out-of-pocket health expenditure.
- Most low- and middle-income countries are unable to provide services to prevent and treat oral health conditions.
- Factors contributing to oral diseases are an unhealthy diet high in sugar, the use of tobacco, and the harmful use of alcohol.
- Most oral health conditions are largely preventable and can be treated in their early stages.
That is pretty scary. Bad oral health has been linked to too many diseases to be ignored.
Oral Health & Chronic Illnesses
Diabetes
Osteoporosis
Diabetes
It’s less an issue of what’s connected to oral health than what isn’t. Poor oral health is implicated in many chronic illnesses, including diabetes and heart conditions, atrophic arthritis, and osteoporosis – even low weight for premature babies. The cycle perpetuates itself, with oral health disturbances noted as an explanation for chronic, systemic illness and chronic illness causing poor oral health. Even the foremost insidious diseases are intertwined with oral health deterioration, like cancer, HIV, and pneumonia, which can require ventilators. When it comes to oral health the first thing most people think about is cavities and tooth decay.
Oral Disease in the U.S.
The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research shows that American adults do not have as many cavities as they did in the 1970s.
● On average, 3.28 decayed or missing permanent teeth and 13.65 decayed or missing permanent surfaces are identified in all ethnic and class groups.
● Hispanic subgroups, and people who are economically depressed, who experience higher levels of tooth decay in permanent adult teeth than other demographics.
● Whites and people of better economic means and educational status suffer from tooth decay more often than other demographics.
● 23 percent currently have decaying teeth that need treatment.
● 92 percent have had at least one cavity in their permanent teeth.
Although there have been many solutions to assist in preventing cavities since the 70s, the information above shows that everybody is in danger of cavities, regardless of their socioeconomic and educational status. Additionally, there has been a rise in systemic illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes in America.
To Prevent Cavities, We Must First Understand Them
When you get a cavity, there’s a reversal during this proper flow. When one has bad oral hygiene, bacteria, and acids can prey on sugar. This erodes the enamel that protects teeth and creates an inflammatory response within the dentin. Ultimately, your body’s metalloproteinases ( a process that regulates aspects of immune cell development) become activated and start the cavity process. It is important to take care of good dental fluids to attenuate the harmful bacteria in your mouth. It is important to learn how to heal a cavity naturally by using natural remedies because chemicals can create greater problems.
The Truth Behind Fluoride
We’re told that fluoridated water is “natural” and known to stop cavities and cavities. Dentists and public health officials have pushed this information on us for many years. However, scientific data suggests this is completely false. Chemicals found in American water are safe to drink, apart from fluoride. Fluoridating water isn’t encouraged in most developed countries.
In the United States, after fluoride was first added to the drinking water the controversy still exists about the health effects of fluoride in the drinking water. Their concerns are supported by everything from a legitimate research project to freedom of choice issues, to government conspiracy theories.
There are concerns that their cancer and the fluoride in water are linked. Other possible health effects of fluoridation (positive or negative) aren’t addressed here. This is not an edge statement of the American Cancer Society.
What is fluoride?
Fluorides are compounds that combine the element fluorine with another substance, usually a metal. Examples include sodium fluoride, stannous fluoride, and fluoride mono-fluoro-phosphate (MFP fluoride).
Some fluorides occur naturally in soil, air, or water, although the levels of fluoride can vary widely. Just about all water has some fluoride. Fluoride is also found in plant and animal food sources.
Once inside the body, fluorides are absorbed into the blood through the digestive tract. They travel through the blood and tend to collect in areas high in calcium, such as the bones and teeth.
When you go to the dentist you usually get some kind of fluoride treatment.
What do diabetes and heart disease have in common with oral health?
Yes, they are increasing in prevalence, and yes they are the top causes of mortality. But there’s more, and you may not have any idea:
All three – oral health, diabetes, and heart disease – are completely intertwined.
It should have been obvious for years, but studies are just now drawing clear lines of connection between the three. Oral health, incidentally, is at the crux of it all. And it’s completely possible to use essential oils to stop the root cause of diabetes and heart disease.
Atherosclerosis is Rooted in Oral Health
Where we once were told that cholesterol in the foods we eat could dredge through our arteries and clog them like sewage, we now know that dietary cholesterol has very little to do with blood serum cholesterol. On the other hand, researchers evaluated over 600 senior citizens who had no prior incidence of cardiovascular disease and found a definitive link between periodontal bacteria and the thickening of the arteries.
The connections had been made a full ten years prior when a Clinical Microbiology Reviews article explained possible mechanisms for this connection between oral health and heart disease.
They explained the connection as one of three metastatic instances:
● Infection
● Injury
● Inflammation
The theory of metastatic infection introduces detrimental bacteria to the bloodstream from the mouth, infecting the entire body. Metastatic injury is explained as the same bacteria producing exotoxins that “are considered the most powerful and lethal poisons known.” And finally, metastatic inflammation is simply the inflammatory response to oral health, which has promising implications since inflammation is one of the most prominent – if not the most prominent – causes of heart disease.
Diabetes & Oral Infections
With these pathways and connections in mind, the leap to diabetes is not unreasonable. In fact, another ten years before these three mechanisms were detailed, researchers from New York were issuing their own concerns. If you are keeping track, we have now traced the alarms all the way back to the 1990s.
“Diabetes is a risk factor for severe periodontal disease. In this model, the combination of these 2 pathways, infection and AGE-mediated cytokine upregulation, helps explain the increase in tissue destruction seen in diabetic periodontitis, and how periodontal infection may complicate the severity of diabetes and the degree of metabolic control, resulting in a 2-way relationship between diabetes mellitus and periodontal disease/infection.
This proposed dual pathway of tissue destruction suggests that control of chronic periodontal infection is essential for achieving long-term control of diabetes mellitus.”
Oral Health – Diabetes and Heart Disease Axis
Diabetes and heart disease have long been interconnected, so at this point, you have a good picture of the vast and twisted crisis of chronic illness in our country. The AMA sums it up clearly:
Heart diseases and stroke are the No. 1 causes of death and disability among people with type 2 diabetes. In fact, at least 65% of people with diabetes die from some form of heart disease or stroke. Adults with diabetes are two to four times more likely to have heart disease or a stroke than adults without diabetes.
Diabetes patients can reduce their risks of heart disease by keeping their illness in check, but it takes more than stable glucose levels. The lines between the risks and results of diabetes and heart disease are blurred, including:
● High cholesterol and fat levels
● High blood pressure
● Sedentary lifestyle
● Overweight and obesity
With diabetes and heart disease interwoven and oral health centered squarely behind each, we clearly see the importance of conscientious and holistic attention to oral health.
The Oral Health Epidemic
An estimated 80% of disease symptoms are caused by problems in the mouth, and millions are exposed to disease-promoting dental procedures every day. Oral health is one of the most overlooked health issues in conventional and integrative medicine, yet experts claim that:
● It’s possible to reverse cancer by properly eliminating oral infections.
● 90% of all heart attacks are caused by oral pathogens.
● Autoimmune disorders can be resolved by getting rid of toxic dental materials.
● Reversing gum disease can help you get rid of digestive problems.
● Root canal procedures increase your risk of cancer and other degenerative diseases.
Oral Health Facts Video
Conclusion:
I hope we have been able to share with you the importance of good oral hygiene and how you can prevent major diseases by practicing healthy habits.
Thank you for reading
Michael
Comments are welcome
Hi, Michael Thanks for the information! I had the impression that oral health was one of the main health problems present in our society, however, some of the figures you mentioned took me by surprise. 3.5 billion people affected by oral diseases… WOW!. In my experience, the best remedy for almost any oral ailment is consistency. Correct me if I’m wrong but aside from the diseases you mention, most oral problems start with people not doing what they are supposed to be doing over long periods of time. In my case, just brushing my teeth multiple times a day every day, going to the dentist at least once a year, and not using my teeth to open stuff has helped maintain a pretty healthy mouth over the years (Thank God!).
I hope more people read your advice and I look forward to your next post! Cheers!
Hi Alex,
Thank you for your comments. Glad to hear you practice good oral hygiene and you don’t use your teeth to open stuff. I am an auto tech and sometimes I am guilty of using my teeth instead of a pair of pliers. Yes, I have stopped that silly habit.
All the best,
Michael
Hi, Michael!
This is an excellent post about oral health! I am a nurse and write about Autoimmune disorders and natural healing by consuming healthy food, moving the body, and healing the gut. Deficient oral health is a significant contributor to the gut’s damaged microbiome; ignoring this will even create more Autoimmune diseases and, finally, death. You are absolutely right with your thesis. The microbiome in the mouth is connected with the gut, and only if we can recover and renew our microbiome, we will regain our health. I am impressed to learn about the statistics.
It is the same in the Netherlands, where people have to pay a lot of money to treat tooth decay, so it is always better to get yearly your teeth cleaned by a dentist.
Prevention is better than a pricey treatment. But there are still many people avoiding a preventive check-up. Do you have health insurance for tooth treatment in the US?
Hi Sylvia,
Thank you for your comments. I was quite surprised to learn about the diseases that are linked to poor dental hygiene. Unfortunately, you need to have your own policy for anything to do with the dentist. I live in Canada and there is great health coverage here although.
All the best,
Michael